Open Session Registration:

The Open Session Registration is for local, non-ISO delegates only.
If you are an ISO delegate who has already registered for the General Assembly there is no need to re-register for the Open Session.

Kindly note that there are limited spaces for non-ISO delegates. Attendance at the open session is therefore by application and approval only. Your registration will be evaluated and you will be advised if you are successful.

Online Registration
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To Download the Open Session programme please click here

Open Session Organized in the Framework of the ISO 31st General Assembly

Open Session Venue: Baniyas Ballroom, Grand Hyatt Dubai

Buildings for a sustainable future

Today, new commercial, governmental or residential buildings need to meet a multiplicity of demands: from resistance to fire and flood, natural disasters and terrorist attack, through energy efficiency and a reduced environmental footprint, to ease of integration with information and communication technology (ITC) networks as well as accessibility for disabled or elderly persons.

Buildings represent a large share of the economic assets of individuals, organizations and nations. The sector is a major provider of employment. Construction materials and processes have an impact on the health and safety of both construction workers and the people who live or work in buildings, and the quality of buildings has a direct influence on the quality of life. From an environmental perspective, construction is both a major consumer of natural resources and a potential generator of large amounts of waste and pollution. In addition, buildings are significant users of energy, with related emissions of greenhouse gases.

With so much at stake, principles for sustainability need to be translated into buildings in order to optimize energy efficiency, safety, security, communication and sheer comfort and convenience, as well as being as accessible as possible to people regardless of age or capacities – a feature that may increasingly be required of the construction industry as a component of social responsibility. Since time immemorial, standards have been indispensable for the construction and operation of buildings. With sustainability becoming a global imperative, the trade in products and services more open and the design and construction of buildings more subject to international competition, International Standards must provide the means by which sustainable technologies and best practices can be disseminated and implemented efficiently and effectively on a global scale.

International Standards, supporting energy efficiency, environmental performance, environmental impact of building products or greenhouse gas emission accounting and verification, provide a firm foundation for designers, architects, engineers, owners, facility managers and government authorities to develop and operate sustainable buildings.

With the globalization of trade, enterprises and professionals from many different countries, accustomed to differing national or regional building codes, must increasingly work together on major construction projects. In such circumstances, globally relevant standards based on international consensus among experts in the relevant field can provide a "red thread" to guide cooperation and harmonize practice, thus promoting efficiency and safety, whilst avoiding creating unnecessary technical barriers to trade.

The open session at the 2008 ISO General Assembly will address the expectations on international standardization in this area, highlight exemplary achievements and foster new avenues for the development of ISO standards to support the incorporation of new technologies and best practices for the construction and operation of the sustainable buildings of the future.